Upper St. Clair introduces pay-to-play planTuesday, June 14, 2011By Janice Crompton, Pittsburgh Post-GazetteMiddle school athletes in the Upper St. Clair school district may get a reprieve from drastic program cuts. School board members on Monday night heard details of a plan to reinstate most funding for middle school sports by charging participation fees for all athletes districtwide.

After gathering feedback from parents, coaches and athletic officials, Superintendent Patrick O'Toole revamped part of a preliminary $59.2 million spending plan for next year. The previous plan called for $100,000 in program cuts for middle school sports. The new plan calls for athletic fees of between $50 to $100 for high school students and $25 to $75 for those in middle school. Fees for individual students would be capped at $175 per year, while families would have to pay a maximum of $275 per year. School directors approved the preliminary budget at the May 23 meeting.

Under the new proposal, athletes would be charged fees based on each sport's cost to the district for transportation, equipment and other expenses.

Though the fees would generate an estimated $75,475 in projected revenues each year, Mr. O'Toole said Upper St. Clair probably will face deeper cuts starting next year, when he believes the district will have to begin furloughing employees to balance the budget.

"With our budget projections, we're looking at furloughs down the road," Mr. O'Toole said. He added that the district likely will begin cutting foreign languages, library and physical education programs beginning next year.